World Leading Brake Specialists

What causes brake vibration or steering wheel flutter?

Automotive vehicle brakes are an exact science and after several thousands of mile of driving sometimes a brake vibration occurs which is due to several things and can be remedied as follows:

First of all it is important to detect if the vibration is coming from the front brakes or the rear. Generally front brake vibration can be felt through the steering wheel and rear brake vibration is felt in the seat, the brake pedal and the bodywork of the car generally. Brake vibration can become so severe that it detracts from effective stopping power of the vehicle. Cases have been reported where drivers actually reduce their braking pedal effort to try and prevent the steering wheel from shaking due to this brake vibration and obviously this is a major safety issue.

The brake vibration is coming from the brake rotor in 99% of the cases although it may have been caused by other components within the car such as a tyre that is not in balance, a seized or dragging brake caliper or s suspension part. However for economy reasons drivers should always consider that the brake vibration is actually coming from the rotors as this is the most common cause by far.

The problem starts out with brake rotor run out and checking for brake rotor run out can be achieved quite simply with the run out gauge shown here on the left. If the run out is more than 0.004 inches or 0.1 mm there is an issue to resolve. However even considering that rotor run out may have started the process to experience brake vibration the run out itself is not so much the problem. What happens is that when a car develops or has rotor run out it develops a condition known as DTV or Disc Thickness Variation which is caused when the rotor nudges against the pad each rotation as the car is being driven and the brakes are not applied. This gradually wears a small “thin spot” on the rotor and it is this thin spot that causes brake vibration as the brake is applied and the thick-thin rotor tries to pump the caliper pistons back in the brake system. The harder you press the brake pedal the worse the vibration. Alternatively a driver of your car may have nudged a kerb stone or hit a pothole on the road which throw out the alignment of your vehicles steering and promotes brake rotor run out, which leads to the condition DTV mentioned above and there you have your brake vibration.

The easy and quick way for a mechanic to remedy this is to replace the rotors and hand you a nice fat bill and smile. However your problem will return in 3000-4000 miles exactly and you will be buying more rotors at which point the next or same mechanic will tell you that you purchased low quality rotors. Mechanics may even say that your rotors have WARPED which is frankly impossible and indicates an uneducated mechanic.

The REAL way to solve the problem once and for ever is by taking your car to a garage that has an ON CAR BRAKE LATHE as this machine is the ONLY way to correct both DTV and geometry or alignment issues with your vehicle. The problem will then go away until the next time you have to replace your brake rotors, many thousands of miles down the road. That is unless you bash the kerb again.

Fully floating 2-piece rotor that allows outer ring to expand freely in response to heat. This reduces stress which in turn extends rotor life and reduces the tendency for rotor cracking during extreme use.

Drive bobbins machined from a single piece of stainless steel giving maximum strength and corrosion resistance. Stainless bobbins reduce the requirement for regular disc maintenance and ensures the outer ring continues to float freely even when used on the public road with corrosive salts and other road grime.

Each bobbin assembly features an anti-rattle spring clip ensuring silent operation when driving on the public highway

Friction rings are cast from high carbon G3500 alloy giving excellent wear properties and improved thermal capacity. All EBC disc rings are cast using the ‘centre split’ casting method, ensuring a balanced casting that will not distort under high heat, an issue common with cheaper ‘moulded out’ castings.

Replacement disc rings for EBC floating rotors are significantly less expensive than our major competitors.

‘Apollo Series’ Brake Calipers Additional Info

Apollo brake calipers utilise a 2-piece bolted design, incorporating high tensile 12.9 grade steel bolts for reinforcement of the caliper bridge section. Computer FEA analysis shows that the utilisation of high-tensile steel bolts to reinforce the bridge brings significant improvements in caliper stiffness compared to a mono-block design. A stiffer bridge section means less elongation during brake apply, giving a firmer and more responsive pedal feel, especially after a period of harder braking where the aluminium bridge of a mono-block design caliper softens appreciably with increasing temperature.

Unlike the vast majority of cast calipers, which are typically gravity cast, Apollo Series caliper bodies are machined from heat treated low pressure castings. Low pressure casting is a vastly more expensive production method than conventional gravity casting, but by forcing the aluminium alloy into the mould under pressure the consistency of the finished part is greatly improved. This gives EBC’s Apollo Series brake calipers a noticeable performance advantage over conventional gravity cast calipers, exhibiting higher overall strength and a comparable caliper body stiffness to forging.

Unlike most painted calipers on the market, Apollo brake calipers are not painted using a powder coat finish. Powder coat cracks and discolours with exposure to high heat, meaning that powder coated calipers look great out the box, but the colour quickly fades away in use. We don’t just want Apollo calipers to look good in the box, we want them to look great for years to come, that’s why EBC finish every caliper using our advanced high-temperature Teflon™ polyester coating process. This top-coat paint system is similar to what’s used in the cookware market on the underside of pans and it gives a durable, fade resistant coating that’s easy to wipe clean and ensures that Apollo calipers will look great for years to come.

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